Grieving for the Past
by ijnfleetadmiral
Summary: A discovery provides a chance for healing.
1. Grieving for the Past

**DISCLAIMER: I do not own Kantai Collection or any of the shipgirls therein, sadly.**  


 _This is in honor of what was announced today (19 Aug 2017)._

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 **Grieving for the Past**

When she woke up that morning, Portland had a feeling that today would be significant. In what way, she didn't know, but the 'spidey-sense' that every shipgirl seemed to have was tingling. She walked out of her bedroom into the small living room of the on-base apartment she and her sister shared to find...nothing. It was kind of a letdown, if she was honest, but the day was still young. She sighed and headed for the door. Breakfast was calling.

A whimper from a pile of blankets on the couch stopped her in her tracks. When she heard the whimper again - followed by a noise that sounded suspiciously like a sob - she went over to the pile of blankets and slowly lifted them to find her sister ship curled in a ball and clutching her phone. Judging by how puffy and red her eyes were, it was obvious Indy had been crying for some time.

"What happened, Indy?" Portland was shocked; she couldn't imagine anything that would make her sister fall apart like this.

Indianapolis handed Portland her phone before dissolving into tears again. Feeling helpless, Portland glanced down at the screen, and what she saw there made her heart stop. Setting Indy's phone down, she immediately grabbed her own and informed Wright that neither she nor Indy would be reporting for duty, attaching the Twitter post that had gotten Indy so upset, before gathering her sister into her arms and letting her cry herself out, silent tears of her own leaking down her cheeks.

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Wright glowered at her phone. Neither Portland nor Indy were coming in today? On what grounds...? She brought up the attached pic:

 **Paul Allen  
PaulGAllen**

 **We've located wreckage of USS Indianapolis in Philippine Sea at 5500m below the sea. '35' on hull 1st confirmation.**

Wright felt a lump form in her throat as she immediately sent a reply.

 _Leave approved...let us know if you need anything. Tell Indy we're all here for her._

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 **Thanks for any reviews.**


	2. October Memories

**DISCLAIMER: See Chapter One.  
**

 _This is in honor of what was announced recently (26 November - 3 December 2017)_. ** _  
_**

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 **October Memories**

RDML John Richardson groaned as he turned over in bed, instantly relaxing as he felt his wife's heavily pregnant form snuggle up to him. This was peace in its purest form, snuggling with his gorgeous wife and halfway listening to the muffled sounds of construction coming from her stomach. And it was almost 'launch day', as far as anyone could tell, though Mutsu's 'doctors' were currently undergoing training themselves. Poor Asahi had been summoned and thrown right into the thick of things; while she'd instantly accepted Japan needed her again, she had been thrown for a loop when she met Mutsu and saw the medical phenomenon the battleship had become. She was still trying to wrap her head around it to this day. Sasebo's other newly-summoned repair ship, Yamashimo Maru, hadn't taken the news any better; her comment of "Dammit, Admiral…I'm a Reserve officer, not a Doctor!" had sent Mutsu and Jane into peals of giggles, leaving Richardson to try and explain what was so funny.

A 'ping' from the phone on his bedside table roused him from his thoughts, and he reached over to read the text. He was surprised to note it was from Shigure.

 _Request permission for Yamashiro-san, Fuso-san, Mogami-san, Michishio-san, Yamagumo-san, Asagumo-san, and myself to be excused from duty…they are not taking this well._

Attached were links to three Facebook posts. Richardson sighed; he doubted this was a link to some celebrity dying or something similar – neither Yamashiro nor Shigure were the type to keep track of such things – and so he opened it.

As he read the posts, his heart went out to those shipgirls, and to Shigure as well; the destroyer was completely devoted to her wartime comrades, and any time they hurt, Shigure hurt along with them.

"John?" Mutsu's sleepy voice caused him to glance over. "What's wrong?"

Richardson turned his phone's screen so she could see as well. Mutsu read the posts and gasped.

"Oh, my…"

 **From the dive on the Yamashiro. Patrick Travis piloting the ROV. The Multibeam image from the ROV navigation computer shows the Yamashiro upside down with the bow folded over on top of the ship (showing in red).**

 **This Asashio Class destroyer was the southernmost wreck we found in Surigao Strait leading us to believe it was the IJN Asagumo. It is upright but is showing the signs of being in fairly shallow water for the last 70+ years.**

 **Photos from RV Petrel ROV dive on the IJN Fuso in Surigao Strait.**

 **These two destroyers, Michishio and Yamagumo, found from our survey of Surigao Strait. They are 2 kilometers apart at the same latitude.**

Richardson said nothing to his wife, merely texting Shigure back.

 _Take care of them…we're here if you need anything._

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 **Thanks for any reviews.**


	3. TA Redux

**DISCLAIMER:** **See Chapter One.  
**

 _In honor of what was announced recently. (14 December 2017 - 30 January 2018).  
_

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 **TA Redux**

The twenty destroyers steamed in a ragtag formation towards their objective. As they drew nearer, it had gotten quieter, the usual boisterous chatter being replaced by solemn and thoughtful expressions as the realization of why they were making this voyage began to sink in.

And then they were there. A chill swept over the group as they steamed into Ormoc Bay; most had never been here before, but for five of them, it was bringing back a lot of memories, and every one of them were ones they'd rather forget.

The group steamed to a certain spot and paused, all of them bowing their heads and murmuring a prayer, before various groups broke off and headed to other locations. Four ships remained at the original location, three of them comforting the other.

Destroyer Shimakaze rarely let anyone see her cry, but her sisters – ones Akashi and Yubari had cloned for her, seeing as how she'd never had any during the war – were a different story. Among her sisters, she could let her tears flow, and especially under the circumstances. The quartet was currently standing over Shimakaze's grave. 600 or so feet below them, the hull form of Japan's sole experimental destroyer lay a broken, tangled mass of steel.

Shimakaze whimpered as she remembered the events of that day. The roar of the enemy aircraft…the bombs crashing down around her…the pain of being hit…and finally, the shock that her superior speed was not going to be enough to save her. Kiyokaze, Satokaze, and Murakaze, sensing their older sister's pain, crowded around her in a group hug. Even their Rensohou-kuns, all twelve of them, whimpered comfortingly to the blonde-haired, scantily-clad shipgirl as they remembered her crew and mourned the loss of all who had died here.

The faces came back to her now…RADM Hayakawa, his Chief-of-Staff Cdr Iwahashi, and staff officer LtCdr Honma from Destroyer Squadron 2…Torpedo Officer Lt Tsuchida, Gunnery Officer Lt Sakonjo, and Chief Engineer Lt Teraoka from her own crew…Cdr Uwai, wounded but alive, bidding her a final, emotional farewell before going overboard. Like most shipgirls, Shimakaze had looked up the various families of her crewmembers once she'd had some downtime, and had visited the graves of both Captain Hirose, her first Commanding Officer, as well as Captain Uwai, who had been promoted before the war ended. She'd also met Captain Uwai's widow, who had stroked her hair and called her a sweet girl, which had greatly comforted the Japanese destroyer.

She glanced out across the water through tear-stained eyes at the other groups. Naganami stood over her own wreckage, surrounded by Yugumo, Makigumo, Kazagumo, and Takanami, while Asashimo – one of the few survivors of the battle – stood over Hamanami's wreck, surrounded by Fujinami, Okinami, Hayashimo, and Kiyoshimo, representing their sister ship who had yet to be summoned. The other destroyer lost in the battle - Wakatsuki – hadn't managed to be summoned yet, either, but she too had representation here today. Akizuki, Teruzuki, Suzutsuki – herself newly-summoned – and Hatsuzuki stood at their sister's wreck and prayed together. The last two shipgirls in the group, Ushio and Kasumi, stood a respectful distance away as a sort of honor guard for the families of the bereaved.

Shimakaze noticed the other groups were slowly making their way towards Ushio and Kasumi again. With a final watery sigh, she hugged her sisters and began leading them off. Time permitting, they would all return here for another memorial service one day, but for the first time since her return, she felt a sense of peace. Those who had died here had been mourned and respects paid to them. A second chance had been granted her…it was time to live.

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	4. The Queen's Hour of Need

**DISCLAIMER: See Chapter One.**

This is supposed to be a solemn fic, but there's a bit of humor in this one.

 _In honor of what was announced recently (7 February 2018)._

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 **The Queen's Hour of Need**

The normality – well, what passed for normal, anyways – of the destroyer barracks was shattered by the surprise arrival of a young man dressed in a Roman Centurion's outfit. He glanced frantically around the room before his eyes settled on a single destroyer, after which he ran over and knelt before her chair, his eyes trained on the floor.

"My apologies for not getting her sooner, my Queen," battleship Impero intoned, "but it was not easy finding a connecting flight. Therefore, I had to improvise slightly."

Destroyer Isokaze looked quite surprised to see the shipboy who had, upon being summoned, sworn immediate fealty to her cause. While he sometimes took his devotion to slight extremes, she was quite touched that he would come all the way from Taranto just to visit her, especially when Skype and Snapchat made conversing face-to-face so much easier these days.

The fact that he was extremely easy on the eyes and his chosen attire helped the already-very-pleasant view a thousand-fold was not lost on her, either.

"While I appreciate the surprise visit, Centurion," she stated, "you did not have to go to such trouble."

Impero appeared surprised. "But, my Queen…" he trailed off, "surely you know I will always come to you in times of need."

Now Isokaze was totally lost. "'Times of need'…?" she echoed blankly.

Impero reached into his tunic and pulled out his phone, touching the screen a few times to bring up an article. "My Queen, I thought you would have been informed by now," he stated, before shaking his head. "We must get better messengers in the palace…this must not happen again."

Other destroyers now crowded around to watch the video from NHK World News.

" _A Japanese destroyer that took part in the 1941 Pearl Harbor attack is thought to have been found on the sea bed off southwest Japan,"_ the announcer stated. _"The vessel is believed to be the_ Isokaze _, a destroyer which accompanied the renowned battleship_ Yamato _…"_

The announcer's voice faded away as memories of that final day came back in a flood. The American planes roaring overhead…Hamakaze's gasping farewell as she jack-knifed and sank…the near-miss that crippled her, followed by the realization that she was not going to make it home this time after fighting so hard for so long…a heart-wrenching farewell to Yukikaze, who would now be the last of the Kagero-class…Cdr Maeda saying goodbye…then blackness.

She came back to the present and caught Yukikaze and Hamakaze's stricken expressions. It was all it took for her to break down.

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"Thank you for telling me, Yamato...inform the others they can take all the time they need to help Isokaze through this." Avers hung up the phone in his office and turned to Nagato.

"Isokaze was just informed her wreck has been discovered, so we've got the Ten-Go Fleet and all the Kageros on temporary leave. Also, would someone please find out why Impero decided visiting here was so important that he stowed away on a FedEx cargo plane and then jumped out as it passed over the Inland Sea!"

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	5. A Grave Amongst the Coral

**DISCLAIMER: See Chapter One.**

 _In honor of what was discovered recently. (04 March 2018).  
_

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 **A Grave Amongst the Coral**

The three carriers and their escorts steamed through the waters off western Australia. Most knew these waters well, for many years ago they'd fought hard to defend them. One of them had died here…and it was her grave they were visiting today.

Lexington, Saratoga, and Yorktown wore solemn expressions as they made their way through the Coral Sea, Sara with one arm around Lex as they drew nearer and nearer to a specific position, and Yorktown ever-watchful. She too was feeling emotional; the damage she'd received in this fight was an indirect catalyst to her fate only a month later at Midway.

No words were spoken as they arrived at their destination. Two miles below them lay the main portion of Lexington's hull, with the bow and stern broken off some distance away, and her bridge nearby. Lexington clung to Sara, weeping openly, Sara with crying silent tears as she comforted her sister. Several faeries had emerged from Lexington and were perched on her shoulders now, patting her or stroking her hair, murmuring comforting 'desu's.

Movement off to the side caused Yorktown to glance in that direction. New Orleans was approaching, and the carrier leaned in questioningly when the cruiser pulled alongside.

"What is it?" she asked.

"Several ships are approaching from the west," New Orleans replied. "No idea what's going on."

Yorktown swore softly. _Abyssal bastards…they can't even let us have one simple memorial service. Then again, Abyssals wouldn't usually show up on radar…_

"Keep an eye on them and move to intercept, will you?" She asked. "I'll go tell Lex and Sara we may have a problem."

New Orleans nodded and headed back to where the carriers' escorts were standing a respectful distance away. Seconds later she, Astoria, and three destroyers broke off and headed west to intercept the unknown contacts, leaving Yorktown to resume guard over Lex and Sara.

A few minutes later, she noticed New Orleans' group returning, leading what were unmistakably Japanese ships. She and three of the Japanese vessels broke off and steamed over to Yorktown, who nodded in greeting. Lex and Sara glanced up now, both surprised to see who had shown up.

"Why are you here?" Lexington asked, her voice thick with emotion as she addressed her former opponents.

"We heard the news of the discovery of your hull, and wanted to pay our respects," Shokaku replied. "We once met here as enemies, and I thought this time we could meet in peace and remember lost comrades on both sides." She blushed uncomfortably. "I apologize if this is inappropriate –"

"No!" Lexington cut her off, "you're completely right. It's time we put ghosts to rest." She extended her hand. "In friendship and now comrades-in-arms."

Shokaku smiled and accepted Lexington's offered hand. "In friendship and comrades-in-arms."

New friendships were forged that day, though it was obvious Zuikaku was uncomfortable with all the emotion, and Lexington was quite surprised to be glomped by Shoho, even though both she and Yorktown were the ships that sank her. The time for old grudges was over.

It was time for the healing to begin.

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	6. A Crew Complete Once More

**DISCLAIMER:** See Chapter One.

 _This is in memory of Bernhard Heuer, the last remaining survivor of the_ Bismarck _, who passed away on 08 March 2018._

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 **A Crew Complete Once More**

As the last of the mourners drifted away from the gravesite, the funeral director prepared to give orders to lower the coffin into the ground.

"Wait, please." A voice stated.

The funeral director turned and was surprised to see two young women approaching, both dressed in naval officer's uniforms.

"Are you friends or family, _Damen_?" he asked politely.

The taller one smiled sadly. "You could say he was part of my family, yes." She paused before asking the director. "May we have about ten minutes of your time?"

"Certainly," the director nodded. "I'm sorry you arrived late…you just missed the family."

The blonde shook her head. "No, our late arrival was intentional; I don't know if seeing me would have been good for them."

The blonde approached the coffin and laid her arm against the wood. As the funeral director and his associates watched in astonishment, small humans began to emerge from the young woman's sleeve, two bearing de-Nazified _Kriegsmarine_ battle flags and a third carrying another flag bearing a shield of some sort. More and more tiny humans followed until there were over 2,000 of them standing on top of the coffin.

Immediately the funeral director and his associates knew who the woman was.

Battleship Bismarck watched as the last faeries to step onto the coffin – _Kapitan_ Lindemann and Admiral Lütjens – walked to the head of the group and came to attention. Lindemann nodded, and two other faeries raised bugles to their mouths. Bismarck and Prinz Eugen came to attention, and the entire group saluted as the strains of _Ich Hatt Eine Kameraden_ were faintly heard.

As the lament played a single faerie appeared at the head of the coffin and approached Lütjens and Lindemann. He came to attention and saluted, both officers returning the salute before shaking his hand and welcoming him to the group, allowing him to join his friends, all of whom embraced him with excited 'desu's and 'hey's galore.

Bismarck placed her arm on the coffin again and one by one the faeries disappeared into the sleeve of her uniform again. The battleship turned a watery smile to Prinz and the funeral director.

" _Danke_ ," she stated. "We are all together once more."

Prinz Eugen hugged her and kissed her cheek, the battleship nuzzling the cruiser affectionately as they departed. The funeral director and his associates watched them go, unable to help feeling like they'd witnessed something very special.

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 **It's just as the title says...the crew is complete once more, but the last link to a naval legend has left us forever.**

 **READ & REVIEW!**


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